Many-Splendoured Love/Pretty Baby: Difference between revisions

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“There is no need to worry yet,” Salome had been trying to convince herself from the morning, but as hours passed, her mind was beset by all sorts of worries. Once again it was Thursday. The whole week had passed – without meeting Shrenik. “Almost without meeting him”, she noted gingerly. Difficult were those days, and tough it had been to be patient, but today felt worse to her.  

Again her brain forced herself to recall the details of past seven days. On last Thursday Shrenik had spent leisurely time with her. Like always, he had come straight from work, and had stayed for the night. Salome had made tandoori chicken. Bringing an Indian cook-book from the library she had taught herself how to make it. Shrenik loved real spicy food, and in the beginning he would not eat much of whatever she had made. He would say, “I am not hungry”, or he would  bring a pizza. The tradition of eating at home on Thursdays really started after Salome learnt to make tandoori chicken. So many times Shrenik told her, “I start waiting for Thursday right from Monday itself. One can eat anything in a restaurant, but Baby, the chicken made by your hands is something else.” Shrenik lived at his Aunt’s, and there non-veg food could not be even mentioned.  

Finally, with unsteady hands, she started twisting the keys out from the golden key-chain that Shrenik had so fondly given her. There were so many keys - for the apartment, mailbox, car, car’s boot, hospital locker, medicine cabinet. Her shaking fingers could not hold them all, and they began to fall all around her, making sharp metallic sounds. Only the golden key-chain was left in her hand. Throwing that in the garbage bag with vehement force, Salome burst out laughing hysterically – very loudly, non-stop, holding on to her stomach, resting her hand on the table, covering her face, shaking her head, breathing deeply, getting breathless, breaking down in exhaustion.  

A long time later, slowly, silently, after her delirium ended, tears kept slipping down her cheeks, for even longer. Much longer.